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The Middle East seems to have started a full digital transformation. As a result, it is likely that businesses there will have an increased requirement for managed IT services. This will enable them to properly connect their different IT applications. Nexus, a UK-based managed IT services company, is preparing to handle this increased demand.

Middle Eastern organizations are driven towards digital transformation. As a direct consequence, managed IT services are seeing their roles change to meet this new demand. According to Nexus.co.uk, a UK-based managed IT services company, businesses like theirs are having to adapt to meet not just the growth in demand for their traditional services, but for new services as well.

Middle Eastern organizations seem to be looking for the traditional managed IT services. This includes:

• Software

• Storage

• Networking

However, there are a range of new areas that they are also focused on, including managed network services, managed security services, and managed print services. Because all these services have to be connected and complimentary, there is now a real need for a change in how managed IT is offered across the Middle East.

A representative from Nexus has explained that customers now look for supplemental tools and services, as well as infrastructure that is designed to support digital transformation, which is the stage most of the Middle East is currently in. He stated: “Middle Eastern clients are looking for customer premises equipment, security, voice, and network, and they also want to have value added services. Put together, they are building a technically and commercially enhance service strategy for core managed services.”

The National Bank of Abu Dhabi was one of the first companies in the Middle East to sign up to a managed IT service contract, looking for end-to-end IT services that were networked as well. As a result of their demands, and those of other companies who are now following suit, different IT companies are collaborating to make it easier for firms in the Middle East to actually move to the cloud. This is completely changing the world of not just managed IT services, but also of business software, as previous competitors are now having to work together because they cannot singlehandedly meet the needs of the businesses in the Middle East.

What is also happening in the Middle East is that there is a huge surge in businesses who want to become digital. The National Bank of Abu Dhabi making the move seems to have had a knock-on effect, leading to more and more organizations doing the same. It is believed that traditional siloed IT operations are too complex, and that by switching to managed services, the complexities will be significantly reduced.

Some of the key factors that Nexus has been able to identify include:

• That there is a surge in demand for managed IT services in the Middle East.

• That Middle Eastern businesses see mobility as a method to improve customer experience and keep costs down.

• That many smart city initiatives are being started, which means there is also a demand for managed internet of things services.

The Nexus representative added: “The Middle East is truly embracing the technology for today. They have made digital transformation a priority, mainly because they know that there is a huge potential for cost saving in it as well. When the economy is slower, all types of enterprises, regardless of size, start to look at how to improve their effectiveness and productivity, while at the same time lowering costs. This means that they are trying to build alliances with different software and tech companies to meet all their various needs.”